


R&R

by Solstarin



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-11
Updated: 2017-12-11
Packaged: 2019-02-13 07:59:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12979632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Solstarin/pseuds/Solstarin
Summary: You need rest, and Loki is determined to see it through.





	R&R

**Author's Note:**

> Day 10!

“No!”

“Y/N, please. Don’t be stubborn. It’s not the end of the world.”

Y/N shook her head once decisively. “No. I’m fine. All I need is a good night’s rest and I’ll be fine.”

Loki heaved a long sigh, unclasping his hands to smooth his hair back. “Darling, you cannot very well do your job if keeping yourself upright is a task.”

“I don’t need to stand. Askr does that for me.”

Loki clenched his jaw and let his head fall back for a moment, softening the flare of sharp annoyance in his chest. “Y/N. I am telling you not as your friend but as your _prince_ that the safety of this kingdom relies on its guard’s ability to function. You _need_ rest.”

The shadows under Y/N’s eyes seemed even darker when he lowered his head to look at her again. She wasn’t at all fazed by his deadpan stare as she continued untacking her mount. As a Captain of the Guard, she was responsible for facilitating many of Asgard’s patrols. She particularly enjoyed attending her men on the northern border, where the trees grew thick and the air was heavy with magic, and apparently not even crippling illness could not keep her from it.

Asgardians did not often fall ill, but when they did, the victim was typically bedridden for several days. Certainly Y/N should have been - it looked as though she’d been hit in the face with Mjölnir, and sweat beaded on her brow heavier the longer she was on her feet. After a full day of riding, it seemed her body was about ready to give out under her. But, for her worth, she refused to let it stop her. Loki would have admired her tenacity except for the fact that this was resolute to a fault; the longer she carried on like this, the more likely it was that she would end up worse for the wear.

He thought that she would listen to him, of all people, but she refused to back down. He was nearing the end of his patience with this woman and her stubborn refusal to listen to reason.

Her arms shook visibly as she lifted her saddle off Askr, but she shrugged off Loki’s hands when he attempted to help her heave it above her head onto its designated rack.

“Don’t you have better things to be doing than helping someone who doesn’t need it?” she accused, sliding Askr’s bridle off.

“Don’t you have more sense to see that you do?” he bit back. She could be as stubborn as she wanted, because he wasn’t backing down either.

Y/N leveled him with a glare and returned her bridle to its hook. Loki stood silently, arms crossed over his chest, unwilling to let her win and carry on while she was clearly unfit to do so. He followed her to Askr’s paddock, watching the slight sway in her walk, and halfway back to the barn she whirled on him, beginning to bark at him to quit following her. The quick turn proved too discombobulating for her head to take and she teetered dangerously, despite the set frown on her face.

Loki caught her swiftly, and decided to take advantage of the situation. He hooked his arm beneath her knees and lifted her from her feet, keeping a firm grip so she couldn’t wriggle away.

“You are going to the healers whether you like it or not,” he informed her.

This only seemed to rile her further, and she pushed her palms to his chest. “I’m fine!” she insisted. “Put me down! I can walk on my own! I don’t need someone to tell me I can’t do my job!”

If she were fully healthy, she could have easily escaped, but the best she could do in this state was kick her heels and drum her fists on his chest. Loki set his jaw and bore it until he set her down before several worried-looking nurses.

~

Y/N, after a very short examination, was prescribed a medicinal tea and at least three days’ rest. Every time she was told to do or not do something, she made a point to shoot another glare at Loki, who had rooted himself in the doorway in case she tried to make her escape.

He escorted her home afterwards, feeling slightly less annoyed with her as he watched her shuffle alongside him, looking more haggard with each step. However, she still stubbornly refused to show weakness, and insisted she didn’t need help walking, and that his offering was just making her feel like a cripple, so he’d better sod off.

Perhaps he spoke too soon.

She half-tried to close him out of her house once they arrived, but a boot in the doorway and a decisive look killed that attempt. He took the small sachet of tea from her hands and, already familiar with her home, retrieved her kettle.

“Sit.”

Y/N responded with the same tenacity, though the effectiveness was notably less as her voice cracked with her sharp, “no.”

Loki didn’t halt his preparation as he scolded her. “Y/N, you needn’t worry about your image. There is no one here to see you. You could be blown over by a stiff breeze at this point. _Sit down_ , and your tea will be ready in a moment.”

He was pleased to see her finally sink into a dining chair, busied himself with bagging a serving of tea while the kettle boiled, and leaned a hip against the counter to watch her in the downtime. She had slumped further into the chair even in the few moments he had turned away, and rested her head on the back of it, eyes closed. Her breathing was slowing, and for a moment he wondered if she would even be awake to drink the tea that he was readying. Not that it mattered much- water could always be boiled again, and sleep was her body’s best offense to combat this illness.

He chose her favorite cup and saucer when he heard the kettle beginning to whistle - the one her mother bought her for her last birthday celebration. Likely as soon as the woman heard of her daughter’s state, she would become an unshakeable presence.

A smile took Loki’s lips as he poured over Y/N’s tea, and glanced over to her as he steeped it. She was still, her chest having found a steady rhythm. He decided she could drink just as well in bed, and took the cup and saucer to her bedside before returning for its intended recipient.

She lifted her head blearily when he approached her, and when he lifted her from her chair, she tucked her head and shoulders close to his chest instead of fighting him.

He set her gently beside her tea, but when he pulled back to retrieve the cup from the nightstand, she didn’t let go.

“Sweetling, you need to let me go.”

All he got in response was a warbling whine. He pried her arms from his shoulders, and frowned at the pallor of her skin in the dimmer light of her bedroom.

“Here, sit up,” he beckoned, and helped her get upright before handing her her tea. “Take this, and then you can sleep.”

“You’ll stay?” It was little more than a whisper, but her hooded, bloodshot eyes pleaded with him louder. He tucked her hair behind her ear with one hand and tilted her cup closer to her face with the other.

“Always.”


End file.
